As every producer knows, one of the biggest parts of the job is in the preparation. Interviewing stakeholders, identifying requirements, defining scope and pulling the team together. One of the key elements of this part of a project, which can either set you up for success or failure, is the "kickoff meeting".

The Global Financial Crisis has hit a lot of countries quite hard financially. Many governments have had to take austerity measures in order to reduce costs, while looking at ways to shore up diminishing revenue streams.

This got me thinking, what tools I use on a daily basis, particularly given I currently work in a very restrictive corporate environment? While I have access to the normal Office suite of applications, the range of utility applications I can install is pretty much nil.

The Author

Simon Mainwaring is a passionate and innovative web professional with a broad background in web production and site management. For the past two years his focus has been as a Web Producer driving complex collaborative projects in the Telecommunications space. Alongside his professional interest in all things web, Simon is also studying for a degree in Internet Communication, with a focus on how the internet has changed communication and interaction within society.